


i've got thick skin and an elastic heart

by marsxecholls



Category: Great News (TV 2017)
Genre: 5times1time, F/M, Minor Violence, a criminal lack of Carol in this, because i didn't want to be too mean to greg, except it's only 5 times total
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-09
Updated: 2018-01-09
Packaged: 2019-03-02 16:33:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,048
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13322139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/marsxecholls/pseuds/marsxecholls
Summary: “Rocking the Johnny coat again I see,” Katie said in a poor approximation of a British accent.Greg blinked at her, slowly. It was so weird to not see him running on all cylinders, all lax like when he was drunk during the snowstorm.“Are you mocking me?” He asked, like he was genuinely confused.+4 Times Greg ended up in the hospital, 1 Time Katie Did





	i've got thick skin and an elastic heart

**Author's Note:**

  * For [soverysesual](https://archiveofourown.org/users/soverysesual/gifts).



> i made jeremy kind of a dick in this, fair warning.

(One)

Katie Wendelson almost hesitated outside the room, but the sight of her disheveled, bedridden boss gave her the courage to go through.

“Hey,” She said, as softly as possible. Even though it wasn’t like libraries, it felt like you’re supposed to whisper in hospitals.

“Hey- Katie?” He said, looking shocked, and then he even smiled a little before frowning. “I didn’t think you’d come.” Katie swallowed nervously, feeling as rollercoaster-y as he probably did. “Considering the last time we saw each other, you’d just been fired and you said, ‘I wish I’d eaten breakfast this morning so I can take a dump on your desk.”

Even though she’s not the one in the hospital gown, she felt exposed so she crossed her arms. “I did say that. I’d say it again.”

Greg smiled again, “So how have you been?”

“I’ve been really-” Flashes of herself digging through her mom’s closet and eating hostess cakes and watching hours upon hours of reality TV coursed through her brain. “Really good,” She lied. “Uh, how are things with you?” Yes, she should ask that, considering he’s in the _hospital_.

“Amazing,” He said immediately. “I’m actually doing really, really, _really_ well.”

“He was crying and asked for gummy aspirin,” A disembodied voice said. Katie froze for a moment ( _Grandpa?_ )

But then Greg said curtly, “Thank you, Arnold. He’s got a brain thing.”

Katie pressed her lips together. She had to tell him.

Suddenly, they were talking over each other. “I did research-” “I’ve screwed everything up at the office-” “And found out that Gram owns a company-” “And it’s not the same without you-” “The owns Biscuit Blitz.”

“Wait, Gram owns Biscuit Blitz?”

“You screwed everyone at the office?” He gave her a look, so she admitted, “I’m sorry, I didn’t hear what you said.”

“You think _my_ Gram is an evil criminal mastermind who’s scamming millions of consumers and you expect me to believe you?”

“I know, I know,” She said. Because she did, she practiced this speech in the car twenty times on the way over. “And, no, I don’t expect you to believe me-”

“Well, I do,” Greg said.

Katie straightened her shoulders in surprise. She was expecting a bigger fight.

“She’s the worst,” He continued. “Her own grandson’s in hospital, she doesn’t even come and visit.”

Katie couldn’t let her hopes get up. She needed verbal confirmation. “What are you saying?

“I’m saying I’m in. Let’s take this bitch down.”

Now her hopes were up, and she grinned at him. It felt like they were back in sync.

-

(Two)

Katie Wendelson ran through the hospital hallways, not shy at all this time around. She shoved past orderlies, calling back “Sorry!”, and nearly tripped on a stack of bedpans. “That’s not a safe space for that!” She shouted, and turned into room 402.

Her boss Greg Walsh sat in a hospital bed and gown, a plastic cup of ice cubes in his grip. He seemed to be trying to get one out with only his tongue, but it was not going well.

“Rocking the Johnny coat again I see,” Katie said in a poor approximation of a British accent.

Greg blinked at her, slowly. It was so weird to not see him running on all cylinders, all lax like when he was drunk during the snowstorm.

“Are you mocking me?” He asked, like he was genuinely confused.

“Not you, just your kind- You know what? Never mind. Are you alright? What happened? I didn’t actually hear the nurse when she explained-”

“They removed my spleen,” He said like it was a secret.

At a loss for words, Katie reached over and pressed the nurse button. “ _Yes_?” A voice crackled.

“Did you steal my boss’s spleen?” She asked. “I saw a thing on _Dateline_ about that, or maybe it was a _ClickHole_ article-

A very exhausted looking nurse soon walked into the room. Immediately, Katie turned so she blocked Greg’s torso. Who knew what other organs they required?

“He had appendicitis,” The beleaguered worker explained. “We removed his appendix. He’ll be recuperating for the next couple days, but probably sooner considering there were no complications.”

“Yay!” Greg said, throwing up his hands then immediately seethed, tucking them back in. “My stitches.”

“I’ll keep an eye on him,” Katie promised the nurse. “Thank you.”

“Visiting hours are over in half an hour,” She said, but left them alone.

“Where’s Cat?” She asked, half-expecting to hear the answer _singing to other patients_.

Greg waved a hand. “Oh, she had to go to an emergency rehearsal. Apparently, she was understudy and a mishap happened for her show. Which I totally remember the name of.”

She smiled a bit awkwardly but said nothing.

“How’d running _Breakdown_ go?” He asked.

Internally, Katie debated telling him the truth. When she’d gotten the call from Cat that morning that Greg was hospitalized and that he asked her to Executive Produce the show again, she thought she was on the new revival of that _Punk’d_ show but with that youtuber something-Paul, _Merch’d_.

But nope, she actually had to run the whole show. And it went...

Well. About as smoothly as expected.  

Portia insisted on teaching Chuck a new dance move on air. Justin couldn’t find any footage of anyone doing it because Portia was _that_ ahead of the curve. Gene was sobbing half the day because his wife was pregnant again and he had “sympathy mood swings but from a _distance_ ”. And her mother read an article about the dangers of dairy and was trying to steal all the dairy from people in the office.

She could tell him all this now, when he might not remember, or she could wait ‘til when he recuperated.

“It went fine, I’ll tell you about it tomorrow,” She told him. “Let’s play C-SPAN and Chill, except everything time something on our list happens,” She waggled her eyebrows playfully. “I up your dosage.”

Greg chuckled, a deep and masculine sound in his throat. “You’re not gonna get Executive Producer _that_ way, Katie. One day you will, but not over my dead body.”

He patted her hand gently and she smiled.

“Bet you Nancy Pelosi’s pantsuit is green,” He said.

“Oh, it’s _so_ on,” She said, grabbing the remote nearby to turn on the TV. She settled in next to him, ready for her favorite game.

-

(Three)

Greg Walsh was going to die. On the floor of his office, which felt like it was on fire. You know, he had always figured he would die in MMN, but he thought it would be something cool, like defending everyone from a crazed fan, not in the fetal position under his desk.

“Hey Greg, can you approve- Where’d you go?” Katie Wendelson’s voice rang through the fog that has become his mush brain.

“Katie, get out of my office,” He said, but he had a feeling it sounded more like _wasnasdnasaksamdkat_.

“Greg?” She called for him, until she was right in his face. “God! What happened to your face?”

“Mean,” He said at her, continuing to curl into a ball.

“Seriously, you don’t look good, you’re all pale and snotty,” She said and reached to touch his forehead. It felt like being gently stabbed with an icicle. He hissed. “Jesus, you’re burning up. C’mon, I’m taking you to the hospital.”

“No hospital,” He ordered her as she pulled him from the floor. “Execu’ive order. ‘M your boss.”

“Nope, sorry, can’t understand your nonsense.”

“‘Gonna get you sick.”

Katie scoffed out a laugh, “Not likely. Carol Wendelson calls my doctor every week to make sure I’m vaccinated on _everything_. Stuff you’ve never even _heard_ of.”

“Where’s my mum?” He asked, and suddenly he was looking in her bright blue eyes. He wished he could swim in them, so icy blue. Would be like a nice ice bath.

“‘Ice bath’ huh? Is that some British compliment or insult?” She asked as she trotted him out of the office. Oh he said that out loud.

“Wait, the show-”

“Has been over for over an hour, jeez, you’re _really_ out of it,” She said.

“No I’m not,” Greg said indignantly.

“Hmm?” Katie said, reading a magazine.

Where did she get a magazine?

“I’m not out of it,” He clarified, no longer slurring his words. His brain was still a bit fuzzy, but he was feeling overall better.

Katie cocked her head at him. “Wait. When I called you out of it? Is _that_ what you’re referring to? Greg, we’re at the hospital. You haven’t spoke in almost an hour. I thought you were asleep.”

Greg looked around. Huh. He _was_ at the hospital. Bed and everything. When did that happen?

“What happened to me?” He asked her.

“I took you to the hospital because you were burning up. Apparently, you have a 102 degree fever and were showing signs of dehydration and exhaustion. Minor in the former, moderate in the latter- Wait. I always get those confused-”

“Why am I at hospital?” He asked, petting the white sheets. “Why aren’t I at home?”

Katie sighed, “It’s still in the warning area after your appendectomy, so they want to keep an eye on you in case you have an infection. But the nurse said it was unlikely but required.”

“I have to be here all night?” He seethed, looking down at the IV in his hands.

She grimaced in sympathy. “Yep, but don’t worry. Portia suggested a ‘throwback’ of segments for tomorrow, so we just have to focus on the news-news and you can have a ‘chill’ day.”

Greg nodded. “Am I still feverish?”

She leaned over and held the back of her palm to his head. “Down to 100.4.”

He blinked and nearly laughed. “How’d you know that?”

Katie shrugged one shoulder, “You don’t want to know. I’m part mercury, I think.” She looked around. “Well. I guess I’ll leave you. You probably want privacy, or _priv_ acy as you call it-”

“Will you stay here with me?” He asked instead, finding himself not wanting her to leave. “Cat is in a traveling Broadway show in Buffalo, and I’m just- I don’t-”

“I’ll be right here,” She said reassuringly, then held up the magazine. “Wanna take a _Cosmo_ quiz? This one’s about what kind of sex position goes with your aura.”

“What’s my aura?” He asked her, leaning in close. “I’m not delirious anymore, I _genuinely_ don’t know.”

“Me neither,” She admitted. She tossed the magazine in the air, causing him to smile. She pulled out her phone. “I found a compilation of Ken Jennings’ best _Kennections_. Want to play?”

“Oh it’s on,” He cuddled into the thin hospital blankets, closing his eyes.

And he was out like a light.

-

(Four)

All Greg Walsh wanted was to just _catch up_ on all the stuff he had to do today, and he was _so close_ . Today was going so well, and he was finally going to do it. He was actually going to caught up. Hell, maybe he could even get _ahead_ -

“Oh my god,” Katie Wendelson said, flying into his office, slamming the door behind her.

Greg sighed, and leaned back in his chair. “And that went to hell,” He muttered to himself.

“How did you know?” She said anxiously, pulling his blinds closed. Then, immediately, she peeked through the shutters.

“Jesus, what are you on about?”

“Jeremy’s here,” She said.

Greg’s eyebrows furrowed. “Jeremy? That _New York Times_ reporter who caught us... _working_ together that night?”

“Yes! Ugh, I bet he’s here to rub it in.”

“You’re speaking another language, practically, what’s going on? English, please,” He said as he moved to stand in front of his desk. “Especially if you’re using my office as a hideout.”

“I’m not _hiding_ ,” She snapped as she fell onto his sofa’s arm. “I’m spying. I did a report on Nancy Wake once for my International Baccalaureate diploma once. Granted, it was so bad they had to do an investigation into my teacher to see if he was biased against women. But I still know what I’m doing and it’s _spying_ dammit!”

He leaned against his desk and crossed his arms. He raised an eyebrow.

“Okay, I’m hiding,” She admitted immediately. “But he was always so _smug_ about print news, and now that he almost won a Pulitzer, I’m sure he’s here to be smug.”

“I don’t remember him being that bad,” He offered. “I’m sure it’s fine- Wait, did you say a _Pulitzer_?”

Katie opened her mouth, yet no sound came out. Then, she scrambled onto his desk.

Greg threw an arm up around her waist and tugged her down. “No! Dammit, Wendelson!” He ordered as they struggled. “ _No_ escaping through the air vent-”

“I could _totally_ fit-”

“I know you can,” He appeased her. “But that’s not going to work today. You need to go out there. He’s obviously here for a reason.”

Katie frowned like a impudent child. Then she exhaled sharply and turned to him. “Will you _please_ just... stand there with me? I’ll feel a bit more- Well like I have an army.”

Greg looked down at all 5’7 of himself, and wordlessly tilted his head in the direction of Katie’s 6-foot ex.

“Please,” She asked. And he saw how nervous she looked. He simply extended a hand out in gesture to the door.

“I’ll be right there with you,” He offered. She smiled and they walked out to the bullpen together.

Jeremy was there, looking around at _their_ office with his nose in the air.

“Katie, always good to see you,” His coworker’s ex greeted politely. Then he turned to Greg. “And you. I want to say... _Great Expectations_?”

“That’s a _novel_ , not a name,” He corrected with a terse smile. “I’m Greg, the executive producer.”

“Right, of course,” Jeremy said then turned back to Katie.

“So crazy to see you, Jeremy,” She said. “Considering you’re so _constantly_ busy.”

“Yes, getting nominated for a Pulitzer does tend to interfere with one’s schedule,” He said, laughing faux-humbly.

Greg’s hand clenched into a fist on accident.

“I wanted to ask you, I actually have to make a web series about my journalistic exploits, and since that’s basically all you do as a segment producer, I was wondering if you wanted to help me.”

Greg couldn’t help the scoff he let out. “Are you kidding me? Are you _seriously_ trying to poach Katie, my best segment producer, right in front of me?”

“What are you gonna do about it?” Jeremy asked, squaring up.

Before he really knew what was happening, Greg’s fist was flying at Jeremy’s face. Jeremy, a tree of a person, took the punch then came swinging with his own.

Then he woke up in a hospital.

“Fisticuffs!” He blurted, flailing up his hands.

“Jesus!” Katie’s voice said, and he whipped around to see her sitting nearby, working on a computer. “I almost dropped Charlotte- I mean, my regular, old computer that I did _not_ name after the princess-”

“What happened?” Greg asked, gently reaching for his throbbing nose.

Katie reached over and smacked his hand, “Don’t! Seriously, you have no idea how gross and purple your face is.”

“You’re so nice to me when you take me to the hospital,” He sarcastically griped. “Speaking of which, why did you take me to the hospital? It was just a boxing match.”

Katie shrugged unapologetically. “Well, this time, your nose broke, and none of us knew how to...” She gestured to her own nose with wiggling fingers. “Snap it back into place. The only person willing to try was Beth, and I figured it was better to risk it at a hospital. Besides, I wanted to make sure you were okay. Jeremy once knocked out Muhammad Ali. Granted, this was very old Ali, but still-”

“How long until the show?” He asked, not in the mood to hear about Jeremy and how badass he was.

“Three hours,” She said. “And don’t worry, I’ve been yelling at everyone remotely,” She turned her computer around to show a video. Onscreen, everyone in the office was running around like it was a regular day. “They all wish you a slow recovery so they can do whatever they want.”

Greg managed to smile back at her, and swung his legs around to get off the bed. Thankfully, he was still in his clothes. “I’m ready. Let’s get me out of here.”

“Okay,” She said, then put a hand on his chest to stop him. “Wait, I- um. I’m sorry about Jeremy. And, I know this is probably unsaid or whatever, but... I’m not taking his job offer. Would never have even considered it.”

Greg smiled again, softer and realer than his previous. He knew this, he did, but it was oddly very nice to hear.

“I know,” He says, patting her hand that’s still on his chest. “Please drive me back to work. I assume the office is in chaos.”

“You’re right, this is actually video from a few years ago,” She admitted. “We better go.”

With that, they left. Man, he did not want to find himself back there _again_.

+

(1)

Greg Walsh blindly reached for his phone as it rang and rang and rang. God, it had to be nearly 3am. Who the bloody hell could be calling him?

“‘Lo?” He sleepily greeted, glad he and Cat were no longer seeing each other, considering she would have berated him operatically for interrupting her beauty sleep.

 _“Is this Gregorius Walsh?”_ The voice inquired.

He rubbed a hand over his face and hesitated. With all the “doxxing” and hacker leaks, he was reluctant. Thankfully, he didn’t have to wait long because the woman continued. “ _This is Secaucus Hospital. I know it’s late, but there was a-_ ”

He was still groggy, but alert now. “Yes, I’m Greg Walsh. W-What happened?”

“ _I have you listed as the emergency contact for Katherine Wendelson. She was just brought in with moderate lacerations and bruising. We think she may have been attacked-_ ”

No trace of sleep was left in him. “Oh god. Oh my god. I’ll be right there.”

“ _We’ve medicated her, she’ll be alright, sir. But she could-_ ”

“I’ll be _right_ there, tell her I’ll be right there,” He shouted into the phone, then hung up. He started grabbing his jeans from the previous workday and bunching a shirt into his fist as he shoved his feet through the legs.

He hoped to God she’ll be okay.

Forty-five minutes later, he was running into the hospital, his stomach doing flips. “I’m here to see Katie Walsh- I mean Katie Wendelson. I’m Greg Wendelson- I mean Walsh- _fuck_ -”

“Sir, calm down,” The nurse at the station said. “She’s in room 204, just the floor up. But please try to be quiet and put your shirt-”

He was already running to the stairs, and suddenly he was in front of her room. He opened it to see Katie fiddling with an IV drip, her face bruised in several places.

“Katie,” He breathed out.

She turned to the door and perked up at the sight of him. “Greg. You’re here so quick-”

“Of course I am,” As fervently as he could, he went to her bedside to hug her. She hissed and he pulled away, but she kept a hand on his. “Shit, sorry. Bloody Hell, what happened to you?” He asked, pulling up a chair to be as close as possible without hurting her.

“I was getting Chinese food and I got mugged,” She said. She took a deep breath, and he really took a catalogue of all of her injuries. Her left eye was bruised, and there was a cut up by her eyebrow. In the thin hospital gown, he could see several places of bandages, including a big one on her lower arm.

“He- He had shoved me into an alley and he told me to give him my wallet. And I had finally watched _Wonder Woman_ , and Gal Gadot was _so_ amazing in that, right-”

“Katie,” He said softly to get her to focus, rubbing his thumb against her hand, which he still held.

She cleared her throat and looked away as she continued, “I reached into my bag and and threw my wonton soup at him.”

Greg couldn’t help the slight smile on his face, even though he was still sick to his stomach. “Really?”

Katie nodded. “Almost badass, if I dare to admit it. Then he got very mad at slashed at me, giving me this-” She pointed to her arm. “I don’t really remember after that, it’s all kind of a blur. I think I fell on a bag of knives someone was throwing away? But while I’m not Wonder Woman, I think Gal Gadot- are you not wearing a shirt?” She interrupted herself, looking at his chest.

He looked down, and he was indeed shirtless. The shirt was still scrunched in his left hand. “Sorry, I was sleeping, and wanted to get here as soon as possible, which apparently just means slacks,” He said with a yawn.

She looked a bit sad and disappointed as he pulled away to tug the shirt on.

“I’m sorry I had them call you,” She said. “I just-”

“It was not a problem at all, Katie,” He quickly reassured her. “And I am just wondering, but why not Carol? Or your dad?”

Katie sighed, and fiddled with one of the heart sensors. “When they asked me this stuff, I didn’t want to have my mom, because she _hates_ seeing me in hospitals. She fought a nurse once when I broke my thumb for not giving me any anesthetic. And I can’t use my dad since he tells her everything. And you...”

She trailed off and finally looked at him. “You were the only person I thought of.”

Greg swallowed down the lump in his throat at that.

“I’m so glad you’re okay,” He said softly. “And I’m chuffed I can be here with you.”

“Chuffed,” She quoted back at him. “You and your silly British words that are silly and kinda hot, okay not hot but erotic- no- I mean, I’m on a _lot_ of medication-”

He leaned forward so their lips were centimeters apart. “Katie.”

She stopped talking.

“I don’t want to take advantage of you in this situation, nor in any situation. I also need you to know that Cat and I aren’t seeing each other anymore, and that I think you’re really cute.”

She licked her lips. “Really?”

“Yes.”

“Even when I’m all bruised and _Wonder Woman_ -y?”

“Yes.”

“Even when I say ‘hang out with my wang out’?”

“Yes,” He said. “You’re cute about everything, Katie. And I-”

She was the one that then closed the gap between them, and then they were snogging. Faintly, in the back of his mind, he thought _take that, coworkers!_

But then she put a hand in his hair, and he stopped thinking about anyone else. He was deepening the kiss when she pulled back and seethed again. “Ah-!”

“Oh, I’m so sorry-” He cupped her cheek to look at her closely. And just to keep touching her

“Nope, sorry, just this-” She gestured to her mouth. “Is a bit sore at the moment. I would like written confirmation that you plan on _snogging_ me again.”

Greg appreciated the sudden sexual jolt at her using British slang in a non-mocking way. He gently moved her hair out of her face. “I promise. Now, why don’t you get some rest. I’ll be right here when you wake up.”

She smiled and settled into the hospital bed, closing her eyes. He rubbed her shoulder soothingly with one hand and pulled out his phone with the other.

“Don’t text my mom about us kissing,” She said, sounding knackered. “She’ll buy an ad during _The Breakdown_ to congratulate us.”

“While I am feeling like doing the exact same thing,” He teased, causing her to smile. “I _was_ thinking about texting her the fact you’re in the hospital and will probably bring us food soon.”  

“See?” She said, finally seeming to fall asleep. “Meant to be.”

He smiled to himself, and continued texting Carol. While he’s not happy _at all_ that Katie was injured, he’s glad they’re together.

**Author's Note:**

> my first great news fic!! hope to write many more<3


End file.
